Digital Commons Network^™

The Joyful Path Of Lifelong Mastery Of The Piano, John Alan Rose

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Designed to function as a handbook for pianists, this research project is written in a friendly manner. Organized by theme, it contains a multiplicity of approaches that pianists at all levels can apply to their daily piano practice to help deepen the meaning and efficacy of their work. No matter what role the piano plays in your life, there is much in this document that will help you find joy as you discover new things about yourself through practicing the piano. From methods of practice to philosophies by established performers, this project has enough material to be kept within arm’s …

Independent, Semi-Automated Classification Of Petrographic Features In Volcanic Rocks Using Fiji And Weka, Holly Danielle Pettus

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Traditional methods of collecting quantitative petrographic data from thin sections (modal mineralogy, size distribution, shapes, etc.) are time- and labor-intensive, and rarely have sample sizes adequate to statistically describe complex rocks (i.e. volcanic rocks). Although manual counting and measurements are now routinely supplemented by digital image analysis, the majority of quantitative petrographic studies still go through a manual digitization stage where object classes are traced before further analyses. This is a major rate-limiting step that reproduces the same problems of small n-values resulting from significant effort. We have valuated the potential and limitations of using the Trainable Weka Segmentation (TWS) …

A Snapshot Of Ancient Microbial Life: Microorganisms And Organic Compounds In Primary Fluid Inclusions In Bedded Halite, Neoproterozoic Browne Formation Of Central Australia, Sara I. Schreder-Gomes

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Modern shallow brine environments contain an abundance of microorganisms. Microorganisms, mineral crystals, and air bubbles can be trapped with those brines in primary fluid inclusions in bedded halite as it grows in shallow saline surface waters. Primary fluid inclusions and their contents can be preserved, unaltered, for millions of years.

The ~830 million-year-old Browne Formation of central Australia contains intervals of bedded halite with unaltered primary fluid inclusions. Intervals of bedded halite were sampled in the Empress 1A core from ~1480 m – 1520 m depths. Here, I used petrography to describe suspect microorganisms and organic compounds that were trapped …

Getting Connected: Exploring The Role Of Sustainability Labels In Tourism Marketing Communications, Elvira Kizilova

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

While sustainability has become an important brand differentiator in many industries, current research suggests that tourism businesses rarely use sustainability labels in their communications, e.g., on their websites or other types of advertisements.

This dissertation examines the role of sustainability labels in increasing consumer preferences for sustainable travel destinations. Drawing on social exchange theory and anthropomorphism framework, we propose that sustainability labels increase consumer visit intentions, willingness to recommend a destination to someone else, and willingness to pay price premium for the sustainable offer. These effects are mediated by perception of goal congruence and connectedness with a destination. We further …

Sexual And Place-Based Identity: A Life Course Analysis Of Lgbtq+ Undergraduate Understandings Of Climate Change In Appalachia, Brandon Anthony Rothrock

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

LGBTQ+ persons face heightened vulnerability to climate change-induced disasters due to their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. Yet, there are limited studies that examine how LGBTQ+ students, particularly in a higher-education setting, understand climate change in relation to their sexuality. With a majority of studies on LGBTQ+ persons and climate change focusing on LGBTQ+ experience during and after disaster, there is a gap in understanding LGBTQ+ perceptions of climate change in the day-to-day. Particularly in Appalachia, a region characterized by a strong place-attachment to and a collective identity with the natural environment, studies of marginalized groups’ perceptions of …

Petrographic And Core Analysis Of The Jurassic Norphlet Formation: A Case Study In The Lithofacies Control Of Diagenesis And Porosity In The Flomaton Field, Al, Jarrett Thomas Smith

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study includes a sedimentologic and petrographic study of cores and thin-sections from the Jurassic Norphlet Formation in the Flomaton Field in southern Alabama to define a specific paragenetic history of each facies encountered and to identify key controls on reservoir quality. Eolian dune, nearshore, sand flat, and wadi facies were likely encountered in Norphlet core and thin-section samples that displayed a high degree of heterogeneity between them in terms of porosity, grain contacts, cement abundance/type, intergranular volume, and overall diagenetic processes. These distinct petrographic differences suggest that the paragenesis in the Flomaton Field is primarily facies controlled. The eolian …

Reservoir Characteristics And Lateral Variability Of The Marcellus Formation At The Allegheny Mountain Front, Bruno J. Abersold

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Marcellus Formation, a large shale gas reservoir located within in the Appalachian basin, produces the energy that fuels the economy across the United States. Well data and rock core for the Coastal 1H well, found in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, provides the basis to understand reservoir characteristics and depositional processes of the Marcellus Formation across the basin. The well is located near along the eastern edge of the productive fairway and adjacent to the Allegheny mountain front. We used characteristics, such as total organic carbon (TOC), geomechanical properties, and lithology, to integrate with ten other available wells across the basin. …

Fostering Music Performers In The 21st Century: A Contemporary Professional Perspective Toward A New Curricular Agenda For Graduate Study In Music, Andre Januario

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

What if the core curriculum for graduate students in music performance were designed to prepare students to succeed in the world of the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

This dissertation offers a hypothetical answer: a structured and systematic academic curricular framework for music graduate students of performance of concert music (especially those in terminal degrees, such as doctoral students), along with music instructors, professional music performers, school administrators, and college professors, seeking to prepare such students for achieving and maintaining a music career more in keeping with the current work environment, especially those skills demanded by the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the …

Understanding Visitor Use At Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Melissa Maria Hurtado Alvarez

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Effective management and monitoring of visitor recreational use is fundamental in marine protected areas. It is common to hear that tourism and outdoor recreation are often qualified as double-edged activities, making valuable socioeconomic contributions but also causing degradation of the environment. The convergence of social and natural resource research and practices can help managers to create better policies that will maximize human benefits from, and minimize human pressures on, ocean and coastal environments. For this study online surveys were sent via Qualtrics to email addresses obtained from the state of Florida during the summer of 2020. The first paper assessed …

Francis Poulenc: The Compositional Influences Of Les Six And Sergei Prokofiev On The Poulenc Oboe Sonata (1962), Evan Klein

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This research document contextualizes the compositional influences found within Francis Poulenc’s oboe sonata. In his lifetime, Poulenc was an extremely well-connected individual, often dedicating his works to his close friends and patrons. The Sonata for Oboe and Piano, in particular, is one of these compositions dedicated to his friend and famous composer Sergei Prokofiev. Written in 1962 toward the end of Poulenc’s life, he glanced back to the start of the twentieth century for inspiration and source material. The oboe sonata is then a collage of sorts—it takes on the shared contextual principles of Les Six in which he was …

Assessing Synthetic Aperture Radar (Sar)-Derived Temporal Patterns And Digital Terrain Data For Palustrine Wetland Mapping, Jaimee L. Pyron

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Palustrine wetland systems are important ecosystems and provide numerous ecosystems services to support society. Unfortunately, they remain under constant threat of devastation due to land use practices and global climate change, which underscores the need to identify, map, and monitor these landscape features. This study explores harmonic coefficients and seasonal median values derived from Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data, as well as digital elevation model (DEM)-derived terrain variables, to predict palustrine wetland locations in the Vermont counties of Bennington, Chittenden, and Essex. Support vector machine (SVM) and random forest (RF) machine learning models were used with various combinations of …

The Road Less Traveled: Economic Analysis Of Roads And Highways, Margaret C. Bock

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Roads are an integral component of civilization, connecting people, markets, and ideas. In different settings and geographies, roads can take on many different purposes. In rural, more isolated areas, roads can serve as a cost-saving benefit and can be used as tools to increase accessibility. In urban, more congested areas, roads can be seen as an externality-producing hindrance. Naturally, given this view, the overall analysis of roads should reflect these different settings. To date, however, the study of roads in the economics literature has surprisingly large pitfalls, notably in terms of topics of study and methodologies used.

Spending on roads …

A Systematic Method For Measuring Gentrification Using Building Permits Data: A Washington D.C Case Study, Andey Fomil

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Gentrification can significantly alter the socioeconomic, demographic, and commercial aspects of a city. It is a complex process that transforms the characteristics of entire neighborhoods, modifying not only the observable physical aspects, but also the community structure. Traditional quantitative gentrification measurement approaches assess the process through analysis of Census demographic indicators coupled with field visit analysis of the physical built environment. This study proposes a new gentrification measuring approach that combines traditional Census indicators with a new indicator in the form of City Building Permits. Two GIS spatial analysis techniques are utilized to evaluate the effectiveness and accuracy of the …

Dynamic Modelling And Control Of Grid-Level Energy Storage Systems, Sai Pushpitha Vudata

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The focus of this work is on two energy storage technologies, namely pumped storage hydroelectricity (PHS) and secondary batteries. Under secondary battery technologies, two potential technologies for grid-scale storage, namely high-temperature sodium-sulfur (NaS) battery and vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB), are investigated. PHS is a largescale (>100 MW) technology that stores and generates energy by transporting water between two reservoirs at different elevations. The goal is to develop a detailed dynamic model of PHS and then design the controllers to follow the desired load trajectory accurately with high efficiency. The NaS battery and VRFB are advanced secondary batteries which …

Unconventional Gas Pipeline Right-Of-Way Influence On Wildlife, Samuel C. Knopka

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The development of horizontal drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale in 2004 resulted in rapid exploitation of the play in the Appalachian Basin. This “unconventional” gas well drilling accesses resources deeper beneath the surface and allows for multiple wells to be co-located on a single well pad. This results in fewer, but larger, well pads on the landscape than traditional vertical wells. Pipelines are required to transport the volumes of gas produced by unconventional wells to production facilities and market. The effects of gathering pipelines, which transport gas from well pads to larger transport pipelines, are poorly studied …

Putting Policy In Its Place: Policy Enactment And Engagement Through A Multiscalar Policy-Shed Framework, Barbara L. Maclennan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The objective of this research is to examine the spatial components integral to policy formation, implementation, and evaluation. The research uses solid waste as a case study to explore a multiscalar GIS policy-shed framework. To this end, the goal of this dissertation is to examine the spatial nature of public policy. The research applies spatial concepts and multiscalar methodological applications embedded within GIS and geovisualization to explore the complex spaces surrounding public policy implementation and evaluation.

Evaluation Of A Low-Cost Uas And Phenocams For Measuring Grapevine Greenness, Timothy J. Hoheneder

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Unpersoned aerial systems (UAS) could provide winegrowers with the potential to monitor vineyard productivity with ultra-high-resolution imagery and low operational costs. This ability could prove particularly valuable in the challenging cool-climate viticultural areas of Appalachia. Especially in this mountainous region of increasingly variable microclimates, there could be of great value from an ability to use UAS-measured greenness to monitor wine grape phenology and predict harvest quality and quantity. In this study, I assess how UAS-measured greenness relates to three complementary measures of field-based: leaf angle measurements, phenocam measured greenness, and leaf spectral measurements of greenness. After correlating these field-based measures …

Ensemble Encoder-Decoder Models For Predicting Land Transformation, Pariya Pourmohammadi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In studying dynamic and complex processes which are influenced by a system of inter-connected driving variables, it is crucial to apply models that can learn the complexity of the interactions. Land transformation is one of such complex processes, prediction of which can help to mitigate severe climate situations and improve the resiliency of communities. In this study, a multi-spectral set of data cubes is used to capture various characteristics of a geographic region. Based on the data cube, a feature space is constructed using socio-economic attributes, terrain characteristics, and landscape traits of the study region. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional convolutional neural …

Non-Monetary Economies: A Study On Different Governing Principles, Richard Perry Vest Ii

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis examines a new economic system with a focus on non-monetary (primarily automation) aspects. Currency has been used in exchange for goods and services and this exchange has often resulted in benefits gained by any given individual. What if that wasn’t the case? How might society function if it was not influenced by currency? This thesis explores this hypothetical concept of an economy without currency with a focus given to automation. Using utility and production functions, discussion is given on how supply and demand functions behave in a non-monetary economy, how governing policy could be handled, and how society …

“‘The Negro Had Been Run Over Long Enough By White Men, And It Was Time They Defend Themselves’: African-American Mutinies And The Long Emancipation, 1861-1974”, Scott F. Thompson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation analyzes racially motivated mutinies by black military servicemen from the Civil War to the Vietnam War. Resistance against white supremacy in the armed forces illustrates the commitment of generations of African Americans to a vision of freedom centered on bodily, familial, and socioeconomic autonomy. These mutinies thereby warrant the reframing of emancipation as a centuries’-long process rather than a single event confined to the 1860s. Subscribing to martial masculinity, black servicemen believed acting forcefully, and risking their lives or well-being as a result, offered the best path to earning their human rights. African-American sailors enjoyed the opportunities offered …

Selected Principles Of Practicing For Security In Performance, Hsing-Yi Tsai

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This research focuses on extending the imagination for the purposes of activating our brain to strengthen memorization of music for a stronger and more secure performance. This research explores the concept of self-awareness in the sense of having a conversation with ourselves in order to understand the primary reasons we pianists spend hours in the practice room. I introduce selected strategies for learning pieces through a meticulous process of memorization which impacts not only new pieces, but also the resurrecting of old repertoire. Along with including the concept of the Memory Palace, I explore different methods of memorizing music to …

Association Of Incident Cancer To Low-Value Care And Healthcare Cost Burden Among Elderly Medicare Beneficiaries, Chibuzo Iloabuchi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In the United States (US), 25% of healthcare spending is considered wasteful because it is spent reimbursing low-value care. Low-value care is the utilization of healthcare services, medical tests, and procedures that have unclear or no clinical benefit to patients but still exposes them to risk. World-wide, low-value care imposes a significant economic burden on patients, payers, governments, and society. Cancer care among older adults > 65 years is one of the biggest drivers of healthcare expenditure in the US and accounts for nearly 40% of all spending, and low-value care among cancer patients is prevalent and contributes to the financial …

“The Entire Army Says Hello”: Common Soldiers’ Experiences, Localism, And Army Reform In Britain And Prussia, 1739-1789, Alexander S. Burns

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation fundamentally questions the state of the field regarding militaries, state building, and narratives of modernity in the Kingdoms of Britain and Prussia. An examination of military stereotyping, common soldiers’ correspondence, religion, localism, and army reform all suggests that the British and Prussian militaries were mutually-intelligible and similar, not radically different. This similarity has broad implications for the modern history of these two European states. Britain was not on a straight road to whiggish parliamentary progress, and Prussia was not on a straight road to militarism and authoritarian rule. Rather, in second half of the eighteenth century, both of …

Variations In Produced Water Chemistry And Relation To Regional Geology And Production In The Marcellus Shale, Northcentral West Virginia, Jonathan M. Brady

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

An investigation of 74 Marcellus Shale wells across northcentral West Virginia indicates changes in produced water chemistry and quantity can be related to geologic conditions based on well logs and core data. These changes are determined by reviewing multiple produced water analyses for individual wells for periods up to ten years. Results show variations among the areas in this study. From west to east across central Harrison County to central Taylor County, then north into Monongalia County, gamma-ray logs show increasing intensity, especially in the middle and lower Marcellus. XRD mineralogy from core data shows increasing clay content from west …

Environmental Controls On The Terrestrial Water Cycle In Forested Mountain Ecosystems., Luis Andrés Guillén

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Water is a key resource to natural ecosystems and human societies alike, and the water cycle is fundamentally linked to the climate and the characteristics of catchments. However, the challenges posed by environmental change makes it imperative to understand how the water cycle is affected by biotic and abiotic factors, in particular, in areas that are crucial sources of water like forested headwater catchments. Therefore, this doctoral dissertation aims to advance the knowledge on the dynamics between climate, vegetation and landscape that determine the water balance of forested mountain ecosystems. This document presents five chapters, an introductory chapter, three standalone …

Innovations In Money And Banking Markets, Eduardo Guimaraes Minuci

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The U.S. banking industry has experienced several technological and banking regulatory changes in the past two decades. This dissertation is composed of three papers that review and investigate how these banking and technological innovations have impacted depositors, bank provision of monetary assets, and bank performance. The order in which the papers are presented follows the order in which they were produced as the production of one paper helped spark ideas that led to the next.

Motivated by the fact that money has become more heterogeneous in terms of its returns, Chapter 1 focus on innovations in money markets by focusing …

“Remov[E] Us From The Bondage Of South Africa:” Transnational Resistance Strategies And Subnational Concessions In Namibia's Police Zone, 1919-1962, Michael R. Hogan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Between 1919 and 1962, the South African government implemented ever more restrictive segregationist and apartheid policies in South West Africa that attempted to control and monitor the social, political, and economic development of Namibians living in South West Africa’s Police Zone. This dissertation examines the transnational resistance campaigns and strategies developed by Namibians living in the Police Zone and their attempts to dissolve and frustrate the colonial state’s implementation of these policies. Particular focus is paid to such transnational institutions/actors as the League of Nations, the Universal Negro Improvement Association, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the United Nations, and international …

A Podcasting Series On Employing Podcasts As An Effective Marketing Method For Small Businesses, Sevohn Alexis Bree Hunter

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This time has been called the "Golden Age" of podcasting. The number of people listening to podcasts continues to grow year after year as the medium itself continues to evolve. The ability to target specific, or niche, audiences is one reason why podcasting is so attractive to consumers. This also makes podcasts useful for small businesses. Like podcasts, small businesses can target niche audiences and cater to specific needs. The purpose of this project was to investigate the benefits of podcast marketing as it pertains to the uncertainty reduction theory and to create a podcast that can serve as a …

Women, Water, And Well-Being: Gendered Experiences Of Household Water Contamination In Parkersburg, West Virginia, Emily Brooke Tingler

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

DuPont Washington Works chemical plant knowingly pumped hundreds of thousands of pounds of toxic C8 waste into local waterways, water tables, and landfills for over 40 years, contaminating the drinking water for more than 100,000 residents in and around Parkersburg, West Virginia. Drawing on feminist political ecology and the political ecology of water with literature on perceptions of risk in contaminated communities, environmental reproductive justice, modern water, and hydrosocial waterscapes, I examine, through a qualitative case study, the lived experiences of women who have an intimate understanding of C8 water contamination from the DuPont Washington Works chemical plant. Specifically, I …

Advancing The Spatial Turn In History Through Deep Mapping: Ghost Maps, Neogeography, And Frederick Jackson Turner, Jessica L. Mathai

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The permeation of the spatial turn into the humanities, and in particular history, has both imbued scholarship and opened up new areas for research. This dissertation examines the conceptual and theoretical implications of advancing the spatial turn in history and evaluating existing approaches such as Historical GIS and ghost mapping as a foundation for deep mapping. The resulting deep map developed in this study utilizes Neogeography and web technology in the form of JavaScript Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to develop a prototype that overcomes many of the limitations that occur when simultaneously integrating multiple sources of data and software functionality, …